The information described in this background section is not admitted to be prior art.
Nuclear reactors have been used for many purposes ranging from electric energy generation to medical and scientific research. The use of nuclear reactors is a highly regulated industry with global governments and industry groups advocating for best practice safety standards. Recently, standards of nuclear reactor design have been revisited to further enhance the industry. Some industry recommendations include expanding the design life of nuclear reactors from 40 year design lives to 60 year design lives to allow for the safe implementation of nuclear reactors for decades. However, due to the varying environmental conditions during the cycles experienced by nuclear reactors, the design standards must account for these changes over extended periods of time.